The short answer is yes. That’s because a little bit of bacteria tacks onto food as soon as it hits the ground. The real rub is for moist foods, though. When left on the ground, bacteria like E.coli, salmonella and listeria, shows up to the scene quicker than your long-lost uncle after you won the lottery.

As the video says:

Moist foods left longer than 30 seconds collect 10 times the bacteria than those snapped up after only three.”

So, if you drop a cookie and pick it up, it may be okay, but if your two scoops of mint chocolate chip tumble to the ground, your best bet is to double back to the ice cream parlor and beg for a replacement.

And in case you need some more ammunition when defending your decision to eat that pasta you that just fell, just remember that rugs are better than linoleum because there’s less surface area coming into contact with food.